Outdoors: Twice-shot deer can trigger a hunt for jurisprudence

Every shotgun season, two hunters will shoot and contentiously claim the same deer. To whom does that deer belong?

Disputes of this kind are much more common on the crowded pheasant fields. Unfortunately, a few ethics-challenged hunters put more value on meat than they do on sportsmanship. Recently, I was asked to arbitrate a kill.

Hunter No. 1, positioned in his tree stand, lethally shot a deer in the heart. But as sometimes happens, the deer — virtually dead on its feet — kept running, not all that differently from a chicken running after its head is cut off. Less than a hundred yards away, just before dropping, it was shot in the neck and downed instantly by a second stalking hunter, who immediately ran to tag and claim it. A heated argument followed.

Hunter No. 1 argued correctly that the deer, had it not been shot a second time, would have shortly expired. The second hunter correctly contended that “it’s not over till it’s over — whoever knocks the deer down deserves to claim it. Some deer can travel a long distance before going down — and never be found.”

In these disputes, we need good judgment, ethics and sportsmanship. If a youth hunter were involved, hopefully no insightful veteran sportsman would even consider contesting it. But we’re dealing in this case with adults.

Clearly, both hunters had reason to back up their claims. But upon seeing the lethal heart wound from the first shot, I’d give the deer to Hunter No. 1.

A court of law, though, might rule differently. As possession is 9/10ths of the law, whoever tags a deer first, owns it — technically, if not morally and ethically. Trying to prove otherwise before a judge would require significant forensic study and legal expenses.

According to MassWildlife’s Peter Mirick, “The state doesn’t get involved in these disputes, as they’re always contentious. As far as the state is concerned, whoever first puts a legal tag on the animal is the legal harvester.”

Most veteran hunters adhere to the “Rule of First Blood” — that a deer should be given over to the shooter who hits it first. But that general rule may be subject to exception because minimally wounded deer don’t always die, even when leaving a substantial blood trail. Ask any processor who has dressed out deer that had well-healed embedded slugs from years past. Certainly, a deer that’s only slightly wounded by the first shooter doesn’t belong to him. But in the vast majority of cases, the “Rule of First Blood” is a good one.

This uncommon scenario happens most often in heavily hunted, public areas. But George Gavutis actually had a frustrated hunter in a northern wilderness area in Maine question whether a moose Gavutis had just shot and tagged was the one he had shot at and “thought” he had hit, but was unable to track. The argument went on even after Gavutis pointed out that the bull had only one bullet hole.

Gavutis, a highly skilled deer hunter and true sportsman, admits to finishing off several deer over the years that other hunters had hit, and in each case letting the person that drew first blood tag it.

If a wounded deer runs by you, don’t hesitate to drop it. But take the opportunity to show sportsmanship, honoring our great tradition by giving up the deer to the hunter who truly deserves it. We should all try to remember that to be a true sportsman, one must practice sportsmanship.

Bow hunters rarely have these disputes. A small number of them will even forego the opportunity to switch advantageously to shotguns now to continue their more challenging and quieter method of hunting, especially in areas close to civilization, where many deer congregate with impunity.

Without being able to manage those large numbers of deer, communities — especially those afflicted by Lyme disease — may never be able to gain control of their problem. In certain situations, we desperately need the setback rule for bow-hunting stands to be closer than the 500 feet meant for long-distance gun shooters.

The areas that archers are not able to control because of this regulation are enormous. Consider that a circle with a radius of 500 feet around a dwelling comprises about 18 acres. The total statewide acreage of local deer habitat that can’t be adequately managed by bow hunters because of the 500-foot restriction is an enormous impediment to essential control in overpopulated communities, especially those east of Interstate 495.

All who want deer more successfully and safely managed should press for a change in this regulation for archers. While it’s true that a hunter technically can shoot from inside someone’s house if he has permission from the landowner, the majority of cases involve hunting in forests, where one could be on public land or have permission from one landowner, but still not be at least 500 feet away from an adjacent one.

This arbitrary regulation can’t be justified in the name of safety. Considering all the trunks and branches, an arrow shot down from a tree stand in a forest has great difficulty traveling much more than about 30 yards.

Over 1,000 serious human injuries are recorded every year from collisions with deer, a majority of which are occurring within 500-foot safety zones. New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have safely diminished unnecessary 500-feet-from-dwellings shooting restrictions for archers. Massachusetts should follow their lead.

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